Frontiers of Business and Social Impact (Research Project)

Course goals

Learning objectives
After this course, students are able to…

1. Explain the various theoretical and operational considerations in setting up academic research in Business and Social Impact
2. Set up a well-structured and attractively written research proposal
3. Select an appropriate research method and write a high-quality methodology section
4. Justify their research objectives by reviewing and problematizing state-of-the-art literature in the field of Business and Social Impact

Content

The overall objective of this course is to equip students with the knowledge and tools required to set up a high-quality research proposal in the field of Business and Social Impact (BSI). This course consists of three parts that are closely connected to the abovementioned objective and learning goals.

In the first Part, Formulating and Communicating a Research Design, students obtain necessary knowledge and tools to set up the theoretical part of their own research proposal in the field of Business and Social Impact. On the one hand, we use a 5-block structure to help shape the students’ writing. On the other hand, we organise mandatory lectures in which professional BSI researchers discuss the state-of-the-art in various research subfields. Students submit the initial conceptual sections of a research proposal as first assignment (Research Proposal Part A) and receive both written (peer) feedback and in-class feedback through presentations.

Throughout the first Part, it is essential that students familiarise themselves with academic literature to formulate their own interests, and to write as much as possible to develop their academic writing. This part is organised according to the flipped classroom principle. We provide plenary materials in the form of asynchronous (video) material. The offline classes are used for interaction and experiential learning. Students finalise this first part of the course, by submitting an assignment comprising the various conceptual parts of their research proposal, adhering to the 5-block structure (Research Proposal Part A + B).

The second part, Connecting Methodology with Research Design, is aimed towards familiarising students with the basic considerations of choosing a research methodology and formulating a methodology section that is appropriate for BSI studies. At the end of the first part, students choose whether they participate in either the Qualitative or Quantitative research track. Also, the second part is organised according to the flipped classroom principle. Students receive (peer)feedback on their draft method section and finalise the course by submitting the final conceptual version of their research proposal as well as their envisioned empirical strategy in the form of a method section (Research Proposal Part A + B + C).

Format
Flipped classroom: digital plenary material, interactive lecture and workshop series with individual assignments and peer reviewing.

Effort Requirements
Due to the interactive nature of the course, there is an effort requirement for the session. Attendance of 80% the sessions is required to be eligible for a (partial) retake. Retakes are only possible if the final grade is higher than a 4 out of 10.

In case online access is required for this course and you are not in the position to buy the access code, you are advised to contact the course coordinator for an alternative solution. Please note that access codes are not re-usable meaning that codes from second hand books do not work, as well as access codes from books with a different ISBN. Separate or spare codes are usually not available.